Five short questions with the current movers and shakers of food, drink and design. We spoke to the innovative Durlings who are remastering the cocktail world with their great brand Lockdown Liquor. Their mixes are crafted by expert mixologists using the best quality ingredients and never compromising on flavour. 

1. What sparked your idea for Lockdown Liquor?

Lockdown Liquor didn’t start originally as a business idea; we really just wanted to bring some positivity to what was a pretty negative situation. Everyone at that stage was at home with all social interaction conducted over Zoom calls, with a cloud of uncertainty as to how long this was going to be the norm. When interest and demand grew, we decided to turn the focus into an initiative to assist with raising awareness and funds for the NHS Charities Together. The speed of growth was quite overwhelming and at this stage we realised that there was obvious potential and opportunity within the category, which confirmed our decision to incorporate Lockdown Liquor as a company.

2. What have you found the most difficult about starting the business?

The fact that it was started during a global pandemic was definitely one of the hardest challenges, however, was also the reason for the inception of it, so hard to look at it as a negative at the same time. We were very lucky to have a solid infrastructure and seasoned team within our other company, Total Management Group that we could lean on, which helped us lay the foundations of Lockdown Liquor and keep up with the pace of how quickly things were moving. We did encounter some small issues, mainly with obtaining the large amounts of ingredients and alcohol required to keep up with demand and the sheer volume of sales, especially at that time where deliveries were heavily affected by the restrictions of COVID.

3. What has been your biggest ‘pinch me’ moment? 

Hard question to answer, as I feel we have had a few due to the fact that we didn’t have expectations of building a business during the pandemic as well as in an industry with no previous experience. A big one would have to be signing a distribution agreement with C&C Group, the UK’s No. 1 drinks distributor after only six months. Another would be launching a bespoke range of cocktails for Cote Brasserie across their entire estate, however it’s still crazy meeting people you don’t know who are talking about your drinks and the brand. 

4. What are you most excited about in Lockdown’s future? 

We are really excited with the continued roll out plans to the on trade, as well as continuing to grow the product range and offering.

5. What is your favourite cocktail? Why?

Tricky one… we are big fans of tequila, so our Picante is always a favourite, however last Spring we released an Island Punch with Mount Gay Rum which was our preferred summer drink.

Enter our Valentine's Day Giveaway with Lockdown Liquor here.